TX State Sen. Wendy Davis Announces Run For Governor

Reuters: Wendy Davis Announced Her Candidacy For Governor Of Texas. Texas State Senator Wendy Davis announced her plan to run for governor on October 3. From Reuters:

Wendy Davis, the Texas state senator who staged a filibuster against sweeping abortion restrictions, announced on Thursday that she would run for governor of the state.

[...]

The announcement ends months of speculation over the political future of the 50-year-old Democrat, who gained national attention when she talked for nearly 11 hours on the Texas Senate floor in June to temporarily block new restrictions on abortion. [Reuters, 10/3/13]

Davis Received National Attention For Filibustering Draconian Restrictions To Texas Women's Reproductive Rights. In June, Davis filibustered a proposed bill that was expected to close all but five of the state's women's health clinics. As NPR wrote:

Davis stood and spoke continuously for nearly 11 hours in an attempt to block passage of SB 5, a bill that would ban all abortions after 20 weeks and could effectively close all but five abortion clinics in the state. Supporters say the new, stringent standards raise the level of care for Texas women. The majority of Texas voters polled have shown support for restrictions on abortion.

The dramatic restrictions in the bill had already drawn national attention for their reach. But her riveting, one-woman attempt to stop it put Wendy Davis' name on the national map. [NPR, 6/26/13]

Davis Announced Run For Governor With Twitter Photo Of Herself With Texas Children. After announcing her candidacy for governor, Davis tweeted:

[Twitter.com, 10/3/13]

Right-Wing Media Respond With Vicious Smears, Call Announcement “Disgusting”

Fox News' Michelle Malkin: “Abortion Extremist” Davis Sounds “Ghoulish,” Should Have Posed With “Gosnell Jars.” Fox contributor Michelle Malkin claimed that Davis sounded “ghoulish” when she had tweeted about “a better tomorrow” for Texans. Malkin later tweeted that instead of children in the photo, Davis should have been surrounded by convicted murderer Kermit Gosnell's jars, which reportedly contained human remains.

[Twitter.com, 10/3/13]

[Twitter.com, 10/3/13]

Fox News' Katie Pavlich: Davis' Photo Is “Sick” And “Disgusting.” Fox News contributor and Townhall editor Katie Pavlich smeared Davis as “famous for infanticide” on Twitter, calling the photo “sick”:

[Twitter.com, 10/3/13]

[Twitter.com, 10/3/13]

Fox News' Erick Erickson: Davis Could “Abort” Campaign After 26 Weeks “With A Clear Conscience.” Following Davis' official declaration of her candidacy for Texas governor, Fox contributor Erick Erickson tweeted:

 [Twitter.com, 10/3/13]

Media Research Center's Dan Gainor: Wendy Davis Is An “Aspiring Baby Killer.” Dan Gainor, vice president of Business and Culture for the conservative Media Research Center, tweeted of Davis' announcement:

[Twitter.com, 10/3/13]

Gainor later tweeted:

[Twitter.com, 10/3/13]

National Review Online: “Abortion Barbie Enters The Race In Texas.” On the front page of its website, National Review Online (NRO) linked to an article on Davis' announcement by declaring:

[National Review Online, 10/4/13]

NRO later altered the frontpage teaser to read:

[National Review Online, 10/4/13] 

Fox Figures Have Previously Targeted Davis For Supporting Women's Reproductive Rights

Erickson Labeled Davis “Abortion Barbie.” In August, Fox contributor Erickson deemed Davis “Abortion Barbie” after The Weekly Standard linked legal abortion to the crimes of convicted murderer Kermit Gosnell when questioning Davis:

[Twitter.com, 8/6/13, via Media Matters]

Fox News' Laura Ingraham Asked Davis: “Which Kids That You See On The Playground Shouldn't Be There?” After Davis' filibuster in June, frequent O'Reilly Factor guest host and Fox News contributor Laura Ingraham tweeted to Davis, “Which kids that you see on the playground shouldn't be there?”:

[Twitter.com, 6/27/13, via Media Matters]